Les Revenants (The Returned) - Series 1
French audio with hard-coded English subtitles
French TV remake of the 2004 zombie film They Came Back. Takes place in a small French town which sits precariously in a valley below a large dam. This is not a Hollywood zombie story where they want to kill and eat people. These zombies just return to resume their lives as though nothing ever happened. Reading the reviews it appears this would be enjoyed by those that enjoy the challenge of a complicated story, however, some have complained that it ends with too many loose threads. It will be returning for a 2nd series, but don't expect to see it for a couple of years. One review states it shares an ambiance with Twin Peaks. Be aware that some of the posted comments on IMDB contain spoilers.
"The Returned opens in a small mountain community which is rocked to its core when several local people who are presumed dead suddenly re-appear at their homes. Despite having passed away some years earlier, these ghostly characters appear in human form, they have not aged, and they are completely unaware of their own fatality. Determined to reclaim their lives and start over, they slowly come to realize that they are not the only ones to have been brought back from the dead. Their return augers torment for their community when a series of gruesome murders bear a chilling resemblance to the work of a serial killer from the past. This is a homecoming like no other."
"Slow in a good way, of course, because it's all about suspense. People start coming back from the dead - some are better remembered than others, some are more aware of what's going on, some just want to start again. This makes the narrative layered, the characters' stories only slowly become clear, the whole situation gradually starts to make sense. There's no hurry, plenty of atmosphere, and a lot is left to the imagination (or at least not explained properly, which I suppose amounts to the same). Family drama overlaps with the fantasy element, so one minute it's really sad and moving, the next weird or horrifying, and all wrapped up in a melancholy soundtrack and lovely mountain scenery. Unsettling, sometimes baffling, but strangely addictive viewing."
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